Formula 1

F1, the (fiscal and sporting) fascination of the Monaco Grand Prix

Leaving Imola, Formula 1 moves to Monte Carlo, for Charles Leclerc's home Grand Prix. However, the Monegasque is not the only driver residing in Monaco. As for many tennis players, the Principality is an ideal location for these globetrotters who can choose a residence where they can avoid personal income tax and live in a Mediterranean and luxury environment

19 May 2025

Imola 18-05-2025 Formula 1 - Gran Premio del Made in Italy e dell’Emilia Romagna 2025, nella foto: Charles Leclerc - Ferrari (Foto IPP/Enrico Schiavi)

6' min read

The Imola Grand Prix revived Max Verstappen's world championship ambitions. With his aggressive overtaking of Oscar Piastri on the first lap, the Dutch driver recovered a pole position lost by just 34 thousandths. From there he ran an excellent race, always remaining in control of operations: if the Virtual Safety Car clearly favoured him, the entry of the Safety Car was a risk, with the two McLarens benefiting from a rapprochement with the leader. However, Red Bull's race pace seemed truly competitive, also witnessed by Yuki Tsunoda's entry into the points zone, having started from the pits following a frightening accident in qualifying. However, the two Papaya single-seaters with Norris P2 and Piastri P3 remained on the podium.

Ferrari bring home 20 points with a race performance on the level of McLaren and Red Bull. The single-seater from Maranello seems to be the nemesis of the SF-23: just as in 2023 the car was great in qualifying and terrible in the race, so the SF-25 is great in the race, but a disaster in qualifying. The result? A season below ambition, chasing the single-seaters that have done well, i.e. those that, regardless of the weather or track conditions, show consistent results throughout the calendar.

Mercedes, another example of a swinging car in terms of performance, showed its worst side on the Santerno circuit. George Russell and Kimi Antonelli were not able to have an adequate race pace, being even slower than the Aston Martin in some phases of the race. Moreover, reliability interrupted the race of the Italian driver, who was thus unable to finish his first career home Grand Prix.

If the constructors' standings leave little hope for a world championship fight, the drivers' championship is alive. The absence of a first driver at McLaren is a big advantage for Max. In fact, at the end of the day, the two McLaren drivers are alternating and although the sum of their points in the constructors' championship (279) is greater than the sum of Red Bull (131) + Mercedes (147), Verstappen is there, just 22 points off the top. The race in Monaco and the following one in Barcelona (with the rule change on wing flexibility) will perhaps give a clearer view of the Dutch driver's real chances of winning a fifth world championship in a row.

CLASSIFICA CAMPIONATO PILOTI E COSTRUTTORI

Munich, a 'home' Grand Prix for many

A land of sportsmen and millionaires who choose it as a tax haven, Monaco is a global leader in the WorldBank rankings for per capita income: $256,581 per person (2023 figures). With a Gross Domestic Product growing by 50 per cent compared to 2014 (€9.24 billion in 2024), the Principality, with an area of just over two square kilometres, is the second smallest state in the world after the Vatican City. It has a population of less than 40,000 inhabitants, only 20% of whom are natives and as many as 30% of whom are millionaires.

The Côte d'Azur paradise attracts new residents not only because of its Mediterranean climate, favourable location and maximum security, but above all because of the tax advantages it offers: no personal income and wealth tax, no property tax and no local tax. It is therefore not surprising that many Formula 1 stars have chosen to live here. In addition to Leclerc, Verstappen, Hamilton, Norris, Hulkenberg, Ricciardo, Bottas, Albon and Russell also reside in the Principality, as does Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff.

The same applies to tennis players. Of Jannik Sinner's residence much has been said, but the world number 1 has three 'neighbours' in the Top 10: Alexander Zverev, Novak Djokovic and Lorenzo Musetti.

PREZZO MEDIO DELLE PROPRIETÀ

Real estate market: boom in prices per square metre

The Principality's small size and tax benefits obviously have strong repercussions on the real estate market, whose prices are the highest in the world, as the data published by the IMSEE (Institut Monégasque de la Statistique et des Études Économiques) also shows. The average sales price in 2024 is €36.4 million and, on average, the price of properties exceeds €51,000 per square metre, rising to more than €100,000 in the most luxurious areas.

In recent years, Monaco's real estate market has shown a steady growth in prices per square metre, driven by stable demand from international investors. An analysis of price trends in the different areas of the Principality reveals both a general upward trend and marked differences between neighbourhoods.

Larvotto, the principality's most exclusive district, has experienced the highest average price increase: in fact, in recent years, prices have risen from about 60,000 €/m² in 2018 to almost 100,000 €/m² in 2024. Fontvieille followed a similar but more moderate trend, rising from about 46,000 €/m² to about 54,000 €/m² in 2024. Slightly down, but still stable, is the most famous district of the Principality of Monaco, Monte-Carlo, which includes the Carré d'Or and the Place du Casino de Monte-Carlo.

Charles Leclerc: Monaco's prince in red

In Monaco, the real host is Charles Marc Hervé Perceval Leclerc. After winning the GP3 Series championship in 2016 and Formula 2 in 2017, both on his debut, Charles Leclerc makes his Formula 1 debut with Sauber in 2018. The young Monegasque had started his Kart career in 2005 with the support of both his father Hervé (a former Formula 3 driver who passed away in 2017 four days before his son's Formula 2 victory in Azerbaijan) and the family of Jules Bianchi, who tragically died following an accident during the Japanese GP in 2014.

In 2019, with his move to Scuderia Ferrari alongside Sebastian Vettel, Charles entered the motorsport elite for good, winning the hearts of millions of fans who nicknamed him 'The Predestined' after his victory at Monza. Since then, Ferrari's best season was 2022, with the Monegasque driver and the Maranello team finishing second in the drivers' and constructors' championships respectively.

But it was in 2024 that the most awaited success arrived: the victory in the Monaco Grand Prix, the home race, the dream of a lifetime. The images of Leclerc in tears on the podium, overcome with emotion, have gone round the world. His words, immediately after the chequered flag, touched the hearts of the fans: 'It was emotionally complicated, I cried in my helmet and I couldn't see anything. It's the victory of dreams, on the circuit where everything started. I thought a lot about my father, it is thanks to him that I am here, but also to Jules Bianchi. Thanks to Ferrari, who gave me the chance to experience this day. A personal triumph, but also a collective one: for Monte Carlo, for Ferrari and for all the fans. The same season Leclerc gives the fans another joy: the victory at Monza.

The timeless charm of the Monaco GP

The Monaco Grand Prix is one of the most historic stages of the championship, its stay on the calendar coinciding with the very year of Formula 1's debut 75 years ago. Although the first edition valid for the Formula 1 championship was that of 1950, the first race was actually held in 1929 under the organisation of the Monegasque sports executive and founder of the Automobile Club de Monaco (ACM) Antony Noghès.

Throughout the history of Formula 1, apart from Leclerc, only two other representatives of the Principality have treaded the stage of the Circus. The first, Louis Chiron, finished on the podium in the first Monaco Grand Prix in the Formula One World Championship (1950). Chiron himself won the Monaco Grand Prix in 1931 driving a Bugatti, at the dawn of motor racing. The second Monegasque driver was Olivier Beretta, who drove nine races in 1994, but never scored any points.

The narrow, winding roads, the natural gradient of the track and the almost total absence of escape routes make the Monaco Grand Prix one of the most technical and challenging tracks of the entire season, where the driver's skill can make all the difference. The Principality is always a catwalk for celebrities and millionaires, but during the Formula 1 weekend this is even more apparent, from the public looking out from balconies and terraces to watch the single-seaters speed by to the people aboard yachts moored in the famous Monte Carlo harbour. Although the difficulty of overtaking often makes the race less eventful than at other circuits, the charm of the setting and the technical challenge it poses to teams and drivers continue to make it one of the most prestigious stages of the World Championship. Moreover, the introduction of the ad hoc double pit stop rule can make the race strategy more varied than usual.

With the championship completely dominated by McLarens, expecting a competitive Ferrari on the kerbs seems almost utopian. Particularly on a track where qualifying weighs more than the race itself in determining the final result, repeating last year's feat for Leclerc now seems out of reach, but Ferrari fans' hope is the last to die.